Winter

A handful of ancient individuals from the Seeker Order strayed from the Icewarden in their hunt to contain the Shade. As generations passed with a severed connection to divinity, the Shade began to change this subset of Gaolers. They became more like beasts than dragons, with a leopard-like coat and protective scorpion-like armor from their shoulders to their tails. More magical individuals could shapeshift. Their appearances were even more strange, taking a more snake-like form or growing extra heads and limbs.

A few of these Chimera-Gaolers survived into modern times. Until recently, they took the forms of modern dragons, the memories of their old lives buried deep in their minds. When their Gaoler brethren returned, they did as well.

A new generation of these Chimera-Gaolers has arrived. While they have never known the world of their ancestors before them, their parents have guided them on how to continue the legacy.

Winter is the season of strength for the Chimera-Gaolers. The longest night of the year is cause for celebration, reminding them of the endless nights of the ancestors’ snowy home. It had long been a sign of great blessing for new dragons to hatch on the Winter Solstice, such as Winter's lucky clutch. The power of the long first night of their lives awakened something primal in the hatchlings of this nest, and they feel even more separated from the old Gaolers than either of their parents.

Winter was the fiercest of his clutch, often starting fights with the others. He didn’t care as much about hunting for food, but found great fun in hunting for monsters to the dismay of his parents. Every brawl they pulled him away from, he learned more and more. His tolerance for cold gave him an advantage. If he could lure his opponents away from their warm homes, he could outlast them. Now grown, nothing can hold him back.